FASTNET Rock underlined his Australian championship status as a sire when his six-month-old daughter fetched a new record of $750,000 for the highest priced filly sold through the Magic Millions National Weanling Sale at the Gold Coast last week.
The filly, a three-quarter-sister to Melbourne stakes winner Tashbeeh, sold via Coolmore Stud, to Mike Rennie of Waterford Bloodstock.
Coolmore also sold a colt by Fastnet Rock, from Savabeel Group 1 winner Diademe for $650,000.
Records tumbled with the sale gross soaring to $24.173 million (up 23 per cent from last year) for Book 1, with the 383 sold weanlings averaging $63,000 ($52,000 last year).
Golden Slipper winning young sire Vancouver (a Medaglia d’Oro Coolmore stallion who also shuttles to their Kentucky base of Ashford Stud), secured the highest average (for three or more) for a first crop sire with his 14 sold lots averaging $140,000. These included a filly from Better Alternative for $625,000.
Coolmore’s Street Cry sire Pride Of Dubai had 10 sold first crop weanlings average $112,000. Newgate Farm’s Dissident was represented with 13 selling weanlings for an $85,000 average.
Don Storey remembered
THE maiden win by Blazeray at Hawkesbury recently was timely to recall the colt’s owner/breeder and former Sydney solicitor Don Storey, who has passed away at age 86.
A three-year-old by Commands, Blazeray became his final runner and winner for Mr Storey, a veteran prominent breeder and owner, and racing administrator.
Regulars with wife Val, on Sydney racecourses for decades, Mr Storey was a board member of the Sydney Turf Club for 31 years (1970-2001), also for a period serving as its vice-chairman.
The Storey’s owned and raced star juvenile colt Been There who won four two-year-old stakes in the 1982-83 season including the STC Silver Slipper Stakes. By Ribot imported USA-bred sire Boucher (who stood at Newhaven Park, Boorowa), Been There then finished second (to Sir Dapper) in the 1983 STC Golden Slipper Stakes -G1, before again finishing second to Sir Dapper in the AJC Spring Champion Stakes-G1 as a three-year-old.
The Chris Waller trained Blazeray is a full-brother to Mr Storey’s five times Sydney Group winning flyer Rain Affair, who gave them much joy when winning 12 races and $1.55 million in the earlier part of this decade.
Blazeray, Been There and Rain Affair, together with a host of other talented winners and stakes winners, all hail from the female families which trace to Mr Storey’s Todman broodmare Rain Shadow, a grand-daughter of 1945 Melbourne Cup winner Rainbird.
Other descendants of Rain Shadow also include brilliant gallopers Rainbeam, Laisserfaire, Lone Rock, and well-known stallions Centaine, Foreplay and Time Thief.
Tony White passes
LIKE father “hard luck” Hal White, his son Tony White was to venture into the media circles of horse racing.
After suffering from a stroke two years ago, Tony struggled with health issues since with the well-known and popular turf personality passing away earlier this month aged 64.
Originally based in Sydney, Tony devoted much of his life to writing, and worked at The Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph during the 1980s covering major racing carnivals.
Later in his life Tony moved to Grafton where he covered racing and general sport for its local newspaper The Daily Examiner before writing as a freelance writer supplying stories of country racing to Racing NSW, Fairfax Media and Australian Associated Press.
Prior to becoming a journalist, Tony was a champion surfer in the late 1970s and 80s competing on the world surfing tour. Only last year Tony was inducted into the Australian Surfing Walk Of Fame at Maroubra Beach, Sydney – a stretch of coastline he much loved.
Vale Flying Spur
Flying Spur – a gorgeous bay stallion who spent 99 per cent of his stud career at his breeder’s property Arrowfield Stud, Scone - has passed away at age 25 earlier this month
FLYING Spur – a gorgeous bay stallion who spent 99 per cent of his stud career at his breeder’s property Arrowfield Stud, Scone – has passed away at age 25 earlier this month.
Also raced by Arrowfield, Flying Spur belonged to the second crop by the mighty Danehill, and became his second successive STC Golden Slipper winner (following another Arrowfield sire Danzero). Flying Spur continued his championship racing qualities as a three-year-old with wins in the VRC Australian Guineas-G1 and AJC All Aged Stakes-G1.
Encouraged by the new VOBIS breeding and owners scheme in Victoria, Flying Spur stood his first stud season in that State at Chatswood Stud, when located at Avenel before returning to Arrowfield.
Among the best sire sons by Danehill, Flying Spur sired 99 stakes winners including his own Golden Slipper winning daughter Forensics and last year’s Caulfield Cup winner, Boom Time.
Flying Spur is also leaving a legacy with his massive number of good producing daughters one of which is Purespeed, dam of a leading sire Sebring.
Several of his sire sons have also proved highly successful including a leading Victorian stallion Magnus, and a champion Australian first crop sire Casino Prince, sire of All Too Hard who is now himself a young sire of winners.